Nine years ago, I started writing about beauty as a new & eager consumer.

Though it’s been almost a decade since, it’s still one of my favorite topics to review & write about. The beauty space in India might have started small, but it’s expanding at such a quick pace & global brands are definitely taking notice.

Bologna Fiere, one of the leading International exhibition organizer and UBM India, India’s leading  B2B exhibitions organizer recently joined hands  to launch COSMOPROF INDIA, the new event for the International beauty community. It happened on 10 and 11 September 2018 at the Sahara Star Hotel, Mumbai. As a beauty influencer, Cosmoprof invited me to witness the event first hand; it was quite enlightening to see the beauty industry from a whole new perspective.

As this was Cosmoprof’s first foray into India (they hold regular trade shows in Bologna, Las Vegas and Hong Kong), it was a preview event not only for the entire Indian beauty business community, but for the international beauty industry as well.

In addition to the expo the show they also held ‘Cosmotalks’ — a series of seminars & demos focusing on key issues of the beauty sector by renowned industry players. 

Beauty Finds at Cosmoprof

Along with suppliers, & manufacturers, a lot of beauty brands exhibited at Cosmoprof India – both Indian & International. I got to try international brands (like multiple K-Beauty brands, there was a whole block!) that aren’t officially available here but hopefully will be soon.

Among Indian brands, along with the familiar faces (many of which I’ve already covered on this blog), I also found some new ones, sharing a few of the most interesting brands below.

I was attracted to the COLAB dry shampoo display because of the fun, colorful variants, but only later after I went online did I discover that it’s a bit of a cult product!& turns out it’a a bit of a cult product. Other than the cute packaging & fragrances, COLAB seems to be one of the only invisible dry shampoos out there that doesn’t leave that pesky white residue. It’s now available online in India.

The bright neon & marquee lights drove me to visit Bollyglow cosmetics, a very new cosmetics brand that was just days old in the Indian market. They have a variety of fun lip products, lashes & sheet masks sourced from around the world, just for Indian skin. They’re also available online (I’d recommend checking out the fun desi names their lashes have).

I recently did an insta review of their bronze metallic liquid lipstick & I’ll be trying out more Bollyglow soon…

Cosmoprof 2019

Cosmoprof India will be back! It’ll happen from 12-14 June at the Bombay Convention & Exhibition Center (a new, bigger venue) – more details on their website! x

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While most of these festivals are all about the musical acts, Eat Play Love (as suggested by the name) was equally about food! I was invited to visit the Maruti Suzuki Braking Point pop up at Eat Play Love, curated by Chef Vicky Ratnani. An automobile company creating a pop up diner sounded unconventional & really interesting & I knew I had to go check it out for myself.

When I reached the venue, there were scores of tiny food stalls with a few common picnic tables, but it was practically impossible to miss Braking Point!

It was styled like an old school American auto diner (how appropriate) with neon sign & all! The main café was in an actual steel shipping container which added to the industrial vibe.

And now we come to one of my favorite parts of the setup, this brilliant mural. Maruti Suzuki is a partnership between two great countries, India & Japan. The mural was made to celebrate both those culture. There was the gateway of India & local trains beautifully blended with Koi fish & even a little bit of The Great Wave off Kanagawa! The mural was designed by artist Sreenihal Pouka.

More automobile accents everywhere! The diner had a lot of plush seats & it was a great place to take a break from the rest of the festival & chill out a bit.

The diner served up mocktails & Indo Japanese fusion food, curated by Chef Vicky Ratnani. I’m already a huge fan of Japanese food but the fusion element just took it to the next level!

There was a lot of different vegetarian & meat options. Everything I tried was fabulous but the prawn & wasabi yakitori was the highlight of my meal!

I absolutely loved the concept of Maruti Suzuki Braking Point & the food was delicious! I can’t wait to see where this pops up again. You can keep up with Maruti Suzuki but following them on twitter & facebook. x

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A home is such an intimate space. As someone who primarily works from home, I definitely understand the importance of a well furnished & decorated home – one that is warm & comforting, helps me work smartly & also unwind at the end of the day. My surroundings are a reflection of who I am as a person.

I even discussed in a recent video how hard it can be to find good, contemporary decor that doesn’t break the bank. A few days ago, I was invited for the Westside Home showcase, where they displayed their curated collection of home and lifestyle solutions is all you need to turn your house into a home.

The showcase was held at their iconic Kala Ghoda flagship store, I love how they transformed it to look like an actual home- first you encounter the entryway, then the dining area (which looked to be set up for an intimate dinner party!) & later the cozy lounge.

The new Westside Home range is broken up into five categories-

• Furniture – living, dining, bedding

• Living – décor, rugs, lighting, cushions.

• Bedding – pillows, comforters, bedsheet sets, bedcovers.

• Bathrooms – towels, bathroom accessories (bind, mirrors, storage solutions).

• Kitchen – gadgets, glassware, oven to table range, kitchen to table range, dinner sets, table linen, serve ware, glassware.

I also had the chance to chat with Lyndsay Smith (Category Head, Westside Home) who talked about how the collection has been designed with a mix of classic & contemporary styles. She added that the The Westside Home collection provides easy home solutions which are aesthetically great looking and perfect for modern homes.

I loved the white & gold dinner set because it’s such an elegant set that never goes out of style. Also how cute is that glass + wood cloche? It’s such a versatile piece because you can style it in any corner of your home.

This beautiful all white porcelain tea set with a delicate, lattice-lace type of embellishment was another one of my favorites.

There was a lot of furniture displayed too & I appreciate that most of it was made from actual Indian hardwoods like Sheesham & Mango wood. These look better, & are just stronger & better for your home & family than the too-commonly-used MDF (which is very cheaply made & a known carcinogenic).

I thoroughly enjoyed getting acquainted with the new Westside Home collection & it’s given me a few ideas for when I redecorate too. The collection is now available exclusively at Westside Outlets around the country. You can also follow Westside on Facebook and Twitter to stay updated with their latest collections. x

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As a blogger, it’s part of my job to know (& try) all new releases in the world of beauty. But I don’t remember the last time I’ve been this excited about a new release in the world of haircare. Garnier recently launched Ultra Blends, their all new range of shampoos & conditioners for different hair types.

The new range is called Garnier Ultra Blends, it gets it’s name from the fact that each of the five variants are a blend of different natural ingredients, meant to target different hair issues. Each of the five variants have a shampoo & conditioner, are available in different sizes, paraben free, & very affordably priced!
On launch day, the folks at Garnier had a little space set up in the middle of High Street Phoenix (Lower Parel) that was open to everybody. The whole place had a beautiful evergreen / forest type theme (with so many flowers!) with different sections where you could explore the variants.

The bottles are bright & coloured according to the ingredients used. The shampoo bottle lids are on top while the conditioners have lids on the bottom. While using a shampoo, while the effects of it are paramount, the fragrance is really important to me too & all of these smell divine! The Royal Jelly & Lavender as well as the Henna & Blackberry were my favorites in this regard. The bottles are of course a sort of throwback to the legendary Garnier Ultra Doux (raise your hand if you remember that?) & they bring back all sorts of warm & fuzzy 90’s memories. Garnier Ultra Doux was the first ever conditioner available in India!

Here’s a little bit about the five variants in the new Garnier Ultra Blends range-

Garnier Ultra Blends Mythic Olive – For Dry & Under Nourished Hair

Shampoo // Conditioner

Garnier Ultra Blends Royal Jelly & Lavender – For Breaking Hair Prone to Falling

Shampoo // Conditioner

Garnier Ultra Blends 5 Precious Herbs – For Healthy Hair Everyday

Shampoo // Conditioner // Oil Replacement Cream

Garnier Ultra Blends Soy Milk & Almonds – For Damaged Hair

Shampoo // Conditioner

Garnier Ultra Blends Henna & Blackberry – For Dull, Dry & Lifeless Hair

Shampoo // Conditioner

I love that they’ve released five variants – this means that whatever your hair concern might be, you’ll find one of them that works great for you!

What I Wore to the Launch

StalkBuyLove Willis dress // Forever 21 clutch // Apple Watch // Clarks Smart Deva sandals

Photos by Harshad Sutar & Kedar Amburle

Dryness has always been my number one concern so I’ve begun using the Mythic Olive – made with virgin olive oil, it’s been formulated to nourish dry & under nourished hair.

You can keep up with Garnier India by following them on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

What do you think of the range? Which variant corresponds to your hair concerns the most? Let me know! x

The post Introducing the new Garnier Ultra Blends! #BlendedWithLove appeared first on Magali Vaz | Fashion, Lifestyle & Travel Blog.

The brand recently brought down Wella Global Ambassador Patrick Cameron to educate 1800 hair stylists across three cities in India through grand shows where he exposed them to the various possibilities of hairstyling and his association with Wella. He believes that hairstyling is an expression of individuality and thus cannot take a back seat, he is also one of the foremost global experts when it comes to long hair! As a global ambassador for Wella Patrick has spent the last 25 years travelling the world sharing and presenting his show stopping hair styles.

During this visit to India, Patrick Cameron showcased his Modern Vintage collection with state of the art styling products from the Wella Professionals portfolio. Modern vintage takes its inspiration from the 1960’s because this era has an enduring influence in fashion, in the balance and the proportions of the way hair is dressed – you can see some of the styles above. This legacy is seen across the board from international catwalks to red carpets as well as editorial work.

I was one of few lucky bloggers who got to spend an afternoon with this genius. One of the most exciting parts was how Patrick kept guessing people’s personalities by the way they style their hair & he was spot on!

“I have been associated with Wella Professionals for a long time now and I am extremely happy to showcase the modern vintage collection in India. It’s amazing to see women who beautifully carry long hair as they do in India. It is an absolute pleasure to be in a space where there is so much scope for experimentation. With the enthusiasm of all the stylists present India and an array of wonderful Wella Professionals products I see a bright future for India’s hair styling segment”

It was definitely a great way to spend the afternoon & I can’t wait to see what Wella comes up with next! x

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I don’t know if you guys know this but I’m quite the home + décor enthusiast. I can spend hours on Pinterest pinning inspiring interiors & planning out how my room would look after the imminent remodel.

In fact, I spent a few months last year searching high & low for my perfect desk, until I proudly found it in January. I guess what I’m trying to say is that I can be a tad obsessive. But I don’t get to indulge my love for interiors as often as I’d like. World Interiors Day is on 28th May 2016 (today!) & Asian Paints decided to hold a little advance celebration at their Colour Store on Hill Road, Bandra & I was delighted to be a part of it!
I have written about my experience at the Asian Paints Colour Store before, so I’m going to try & avoid repeating myself. It’s a sprawling space, laid out over two floors with lots of different decor ideas & resources on how you can design (or redesign!) your space, right from wall paints in different finishes, to wall paper, wood tech & more. There are even mini kids rooms – so adorable!

The store invited renowned Film Production Designer, Shruti Gupte to host an exclusive workshop on how to draw inspiration from homes and Centered on the theme ‘Intelligent & Inspirational Interiors, from Silver Screens to Your Home’.

Having designed homes and interior spaces in films such as ‘Aisha’, ‘Taare Zamin Par’, ‘Khoobsurat’, ‘Lunch Box’ and others, Shruti possesses a deep understanding of the style and sensibilities of the modern-day consumers. Through examples of her films, she covered various aspects from designing homes of characters in movies, to tips on how consumers can use designs seen in movies as inspirations while decorating their own homes. It was wonderful to learn about how meticulous her design choices are, how inspired she was from the story & characters themselves etc. Just goes to show how much attention to detail she puts into her work.

Later on the store had a little activity where attendees could create their own moodboard based on classical paintings, textures, fabrics & more. And everyone left the store with a cool DIY kit – I can’t wait to take a crack at mine.

For those who are always looking for new ideas to do up their personal spaces with all that’s in vogue and colorful, this workshop at Asian Paints Colour Store, Bandra proved to be inspirational and experiential in equal measure. Whether you’re looking to decorate a new space or just breathe new life into your home by making a few small changes, I’d wholeheartedly recommend a visit to the Asian Paints Colour Store – you’ll get to see a lot of examples, chat with experts and more. When it comes to everything home & decor, you’ll never be in better hands! x

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What is Pearl Portfolio about?

Pearl Academy is India’s leading private institution for Fashion, Design & Business. Founded in Delhi, they now have three campuses across the country – Delhi, Jaipur & Mumbai. I’ve blogged about visiting the Pearl Academy Mumbai campus & Pearl Academy’s creations at Kala Ghoda Art Festival previously. Portfolio is their annual graduating class showcase, as the Mumbai campus is quite young, this was Pearl Academy Mumbai’s first graduating & hence first Portfolio event in the city too.

What Happened at Portfolio 2016?

The event was inaugurated by Shri Shivanand Hulyalkar, Vice Chairperson, Ministry of Textiles, Government of India and fashion designer Nachiket Barve and Vineet Gautam, CEO, Bestseller India were the guests of Honour. The students from Pearl Academy exhibited their projects in an exhibition and grand finale concluded with a fabulous fashion show followed by the award ceremony. The event showcased creative and design acumen of 75 students from various courses with some of the best work being nominated for various awards. I particularly enjoyed the Photography on display (everything from fashion to fine art) as well as the Interior Design & Styling.

With over 70 projects at display, the inaugural Portfolio saw some revolutionary ideas in fashion, design and creative business. One student, who worked for the software giant TCS for over 3 years quit her job and joined Pearl Academy and came up with a business plan to create an app to connect volunteers with the elderly who require them. The model based on community based palliative care has been nominated for the prestigious Global James McGuire award.

The Fashion Show featured all different kids of lines like casual wear, bridal, maternity, even kids & menswear. The students came up with interesting ideas like a fashion line inspired from planet Mars and sustainable fashion fabrics created from leftover fabrics.

Portfolio’16 ended on a high note with an awards ceremony. The winners were thrilled to receive awards from the industry stalwarts present at the event.

Pearl Portfolio Video

These days I’m all about video so I also documented my experience at Pearl Portfolio in a vlog! It’s a great way to see a big of the exhibition & some of my favorite designs from the Fashion Show!

You can find out more about what Pearl Academy stands for, their faculty & the various courses they offer on their website! x

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In India especially, there can be a lot of taboos of superstitions surrounding pregnancies. even without that, women might feel uncomfortable or unattractive with their changing bodies. Bio-Oil wanted to celebrate their beauty of pregnant women & the natural transition they go through by holding the Yummy Mummy Walk, & it was such a wonderful thing to see twelve gorgeous women, in different stages of their pregnancies walk the ramp clad in beautiful pastel Inaaya by Shivangi Lahoty ethnic wear.Also walking the ramp were model Carol Gracias & actress Shveta Salve & I think they couldn’t have chosen better women to be a part of it & no I’m not just saying it because they’re both currently pregnant. Carol Gracias made history of sorts by walking the ramp for Gaurang at Lakmé Fashion Week while flaunting her baby bump while Shveta Salve just did the most fierce & beautiful pregnancy shoot ever. Both women have been breaking all sorts of silly pregnancy stereotypes & just overall slaying it at life while showing us all that pregnancy is something beautiful & to be celebrated, while at the same time women can do pretty much anything they want to while being pregnant. Carol also choreographed the walk – her first time doing so!

Also present at the event were gynaecologist Dr. Kiran Coelho and dermatologist Dr. Rashmi Shetty. Expressing her view on this topic, Dr Coelho added, “I’m extremely happy to see all the Yummy Mummies take the ramp with such confidence. Women often feel conscious of not having the perfect body during their pregnancy. Having a baby is certainly one of the most special feeling for a mother-to-be however the worry of stretch marks during and post-pregnancy is a matter of great concern for her.  Using anti-stretch marks oils such as Bio Oil will certainly make a huge difference”.

The specialists highlighted various concerns related to health and skincare during pregnancy. They shed light on the ideal time after which mothers may start exercising in order to shed their pregnancy weight as well as recommended tips for improving the skin post-pregnancy. “A major worry that every pregnant woman has is, whether the stretch marks are ever going to go. The answer for which is try to minimize stretch marks during pregnancy by regularly applying moisturizers and oils such as Bio Oil, which contain Vitamin E, Lavender, Calendula and Rosemary,” Dr Rashmi Shetty further added. She emphasized on the need for mothers to take as much time as they require, post giving birth, to get back to exercising.

Encouraging women to come out of their shell, boosting their morale and making them feel beautiful was the focus of the event. Bio-Oil created a platform for expecting mothers, to help them come out of their cocoon and dazzle the ramp. This Mother’s Day, Bio Oil partnered with Yummy Mummies across the country to encourage them to celebrate and enjoy their pregnancy phase rather than shying away from the world – an important message indeed!

Bio‑Oil is a specialist skincare oil that helps improve the appearance of scars, stretch marks and uneven skin tone. It is also effective for aging and dehydrated skin. Bio‑Oil has won 284 skincare awards and has become the No.1 selling scar and stretch mark product in 20 countries since its global launch in 2002.

I’m going to start using Bio-Oil regularly on my upper thigh stretch marks & I certainly hope to see a difference – I’ll report on the same in a couple of months!

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Now that Kala Ghoda Arts Festival (KGAF) 2016 has recently concluded, I thought I’d talk about a few of the installations & activities there by the talented students of Pearl Academy…

It was Pearl Academy’s second year as design partner for Kala Ghoda Arts Festival  & the students did a few really interesting art installations as well as a workshop. One of my favorite things was the Junk Genie initiative.

In preparation for it, Pearl Academy got together with Hindustan times to collect waste from the people of Mumbai, then Pearlites unleashed their creativity & set out to create Magic out of Junk! A lot of these innovative pieces of art were available to see & purchase at the Pearl Academy stall at KGAF, with the proceeds benefitting St Catherine of Sienna School & Orphanage.

The scrapped PVC pipes turned into musical instruments (above) captivated people of all ages!

India is being touted as a young nation, with a majority of it’s citizens being under the age of 35. To celebrate the free spirit & enthusiasm of young minds, Pearl Academy set up Tic-Tac-Toe, a huge canvas installation at KGAF.

The students first conceptualized the artwork based on the theme Magic & then worked on the massive canvas, which was over 15 feet high!

Prior to the fest itself, Pearl Academy Mumbai held the Design Thinking Bootcamp, a day long workshop open to all students class 11 & above. The aim was to transform students from just being bystanders to active agents of change in their communities. The participants were able to choose from socially relevant problems & had to come up with a prototype, with the winner getting to have their prototype exhibited at KGAF & also take home a trophy.

And now we get to my favorite part, the Cosmic Coalesce installation!  It created illusion through layers of fabric representing trees, branches co-mingling in to each other and generating depth and colour synthesis. The embroidered motif on all the four sides of the installation represents a tree form whose branches grow & spread without any constraint, limit or fear. As the branches on different panels blend into each other, a symphony is formed and the music reverberates and takes the surroundings into its engulf … Celebrating the never ending blend of cosmos that knows no borders or end. This looked especially beautiful at night, when the luminosity of Cosmic Coalesce lent a magical aura to it’s surroundings.

That sums up everything Pearl Academy was up to at Kala Ghoda Arts Festival 2016, I am already looking forward to next year! You can find information about Pearl Academy Mumbai (& elsewhere!) & the courses they offer on their website. x

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